Lambeth’s Planning Applications Committee agreed to grant planning permission on March 24 for the refurbishment and extension of 6 Canterbury Crescent and development of 49 Brixton Station Road, where the meanwhile temporary sites Pop Brixton and International House are located.
Following the planning permission, all tenants of International House and Pop Brixton will be able to access ongoing support and a package of relocation support ahead of the planned end of these projects.
These include a brokerage service to help identify alternative premises within the borough, informal advice on lease, licence arrangements, and practical relocation considerations. Access to legal advice and support, including a contribution of up to £500 towards conveyancing costs and signposting eligible organisations to LBL’s Charities and Not-for-Profit Register and VCS property lists for notification of available Affordable Workspace and Council-managed space. Further events will also be held to provide relocation support and information.
In total, the new scheme will provide 288 new homes, new workspace, an enterprise and community enterprise hub, dedicated and improved storage and waste facilities for Brixton’s street markets, and major street improvements.
It includes larger family-sized homes, with almost a third being three-bedroom homes and half two-bedroom homes, to meet the needs of families in Lambeth.
International House, at 6 Canterbury Crescent, used to be a Lambeth Council office, but was vacated in 2018 to save money, and was then used as a temporary workspace while masterplanning was progressed.
The brownfield site at 49 Brixton Station Road has been temporarily used as Pop Brixton and will close towards the end of 2026.
Lambeth and its development partner, London Square have been meeting with tenants of the meanwhile spaces at Pop Brixton and International House for more than a year to help plan for the future.
Councillor Danny Adilypour, Lambeth’s Deputy Leader (Housing, Investment and New Homes), said: “I welcome planning permission being granted for this important Brixton town centre scheme that has been designed to meet the needs of residents and businesses.
“In the face of the housing crisis, which is having a huge effect in Lambeth, and across London, we are determined to use council owned land to build as many new homes as possible for everyone.
“The temporary schemes on these two sites have served the community well and brought activity to these spaces whilst these plans progressed, but it’s now time to secure a permanent future for these sites.
“This project is focused on town centre improvements and really meeting Brixton’s needs, especially when it comes to new affordable workspace and new homes.”
The council secured its partner London Square to build the new homes and workspaces as the best way to get the new homes built and the project delivered. A comprehensive series of workshops and public events were held to make sure residents, market traders and businesses could contribute to the proposals.
Adam Lawrence, Founder and Chief Executive of London Square said: “At a time when housing delivery in London is at a critically low level, our partnership with the Council will deliver much needed affordable homes and make a significant contribution to addressing housing pressures in the borough.
“We’re committed to creating homes and neighbourhoods where people of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy a great quality of life. This project has been a genuinely collaborative process, shaped by many months of engagement with locals, businesses and stakeholders. The approved plans reflect that input and will support what makes Brixton a special place to live and work.”
The scheme will also provide training opportunities for local and young people, at design, construction and operation stage. They will remove barriers to entry to the development industry through paid placements, mentoring and professional skills training.
Abdul Karim-Abdullah, founder of Solution Focused World which supports at risk young people has been based at International House since 2022, welcomed council support for tenants at the temporary workspace.
Abdul said: “We focus on reducing financial harms affecting young people such as fraud and exploitative money laundering. There are very few organisations in the UK doing this important work.
“We also work with young Muslim residents in Lambeth to reduce harms such as county line exploitation, bullying and mental health issues.
“We always knew we would be based here on a temporary basis. It has been a really good location for us, and we are sad to leave. But we are working with the council on next steps and the support being provided is great.
“I’m happy that this new window of opportunity has opened for us to continue our work.”
Tenants of International House and Pop Brixton can email 49BSR6CC@lambeth.gov.uk should they have queries or require information about the support available to them following the planning decision.
